Behind closed doors
by Adolphaxxx
Summary: AU Rachel and Max are in a relationship, but is everything as it seems? (I know Max is so annoying, and those two never would have ended up together, but you'll understand why when you read it.) Rated T for implied violence and some swearing at the end. Warnings inside.


**A/N: Hey guys! So this is my first WR fanfic, so I hope it lives up to the standard. I apologise if it doesn't make much sense, but it's been an interesting couple of days (in the past 48 hours, I've been so drunk I couldn't see straight, had 2 hours sleep, battled a massive hangover and I'm still going). Reviews appreciated, as always. XD**

**TRIGGER WARNING: Domestic abuse, implied rape (well kinda, I don't think that was as obvious as I'd intended in the end). There's nothing graphic, but if these topics upset you, then don't read it.**

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Rachel pushed herself up off the floor and began picking up papers that had been strewn around her office. Once she had sorted them into neat piles on her desk, she collapsed into her chair. She pulled a mirror from her desk and took a deep breath before she looked at her reflection. A large purple bruise was already beginning to form on her left cheek, a small cut on her cheekbone from his wedding ring. She sighed, realising the bruise was only going to get worse throughout the day. Putting the mirror down on the desk, she quickly checked the rest of her body for other injuries. The ribs that had been cracked earlier that week and had just started to heal had flared up again. When she looked in the mirror that night when she got home, Rachel was sure she would see an impressive bruise on her side, spreading from the bottom of her ribs to her hip. That would be painful every time she moved. She quickly determined her arms were fine, skipping over the mottled bruises circling her wrists, reminders of something she would rather forget.

Rachel wasn't even sure what she had done this time to make him angry. But it was only second period and already she had managed to receive a beating. Sighing for the second time that morning, she pulled out her makeup and began the difficult task of trying to cover up the mess he had made of her face. As she did so, she thought back to the first time she had met Max. Yes, he was annoying, but he was handsome, and he was very persistent. She agreed to go out with him, just for one drink. But one drink had turned into two, then three, and then they had both ended up at Max's apartment. Rachel quickly learnt that from that point on, she was his. He could do whatever he wanted to her, and she had no right to complain. He had complete control over her. Whatever Max told her to do, she did, and quickly, or she would face a beating. Or worse.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a shocked gasp. "Jesus Christ Rachel! What on earth happened to you?" Rachel just sat, shell shocked. She couldn't believe she had been so careless, so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she hadn't heard whoever it was who was at the door approaching. She looked up to see Kim and Tom stood staring at her. Kim stood in the doorway, seemingly frozen to the spot, hands over her mouth. Tom, after his initial reaction, ran over to Rachel and knelt down next to her chair. "Kim, shut the door, will you?" Rachel said, partly just to kill the awkward silence. Kim did as she asked, closing the door and walking over to stand next to Tom. Meanwhile, Tom took hold of Rachel's head and gently turned it so that he could get a better look at her cheek. A worried look passed between Tom and Kim as Rachel flinched at his touch. "Who did this to you Rachel? What happened?" Tom asked quietly.

Rachel's mind was going into overdrive. Could she tell them what had actually happened, or would that just make things worse? Could she trust Kim and Tom, would they believe her? One thing she knew was that she had to stay composed. As Tom's hand made contact with her face she flinched, unwanted memories rising to the forefront of her mind. She mentally shook herself as she felt tears begin to build up behind her eyes. But when he asked her outright what happened, she broke down, sobbing, unable to control herself.

Tom and Kim looked to each other for direction as they watched their leader break down into tears. Kim moved behind Rachel and put a comforting arm round her shoulders, trying to calm her down. "It's alright Rachel. Come on now, it'll be okay. We can help, we want to help you." She continued to talk quietly until Rachel's sobs got quieter and she began to regain control over herself. Tom had felt quite out of his depth whilst Rachel was crying, but now he was thinking again about how he could help. "Rachel, if you tell us what happened to you, we can help." There was a moment of silence before Rachel drew in a deep breath.

Rachel had decided what she was going to do. Now all she had to do was work up the courage. She took a deep breath, and then launched into her story. She was sure it wouldn't make much sense, but it was this, or nothing. "He was so charming when we first met. I mean, he was arrogant, but charming. That changed quickly though. He started being controlling. Things are done his way, or there's trouble. I mean, I'm just so thick sometimes, I deserve what I get. Nights are always worse. It's just me and him, and he's quite often drunk. Then it's not just beatings I get." Rachel took several deep breaths, part of her cursing herself for spilling her secret. Surely Kim and Tom wouldn't believe her. Or if they did now, they wouldn't believe her when she told them who it was she was talking about.

Kim was reeling from what she had just learnt. Rachel was so strong, she never expected her to be in a situation like this. As she was wondering what to do next, Tom spoke up. "Rachel, are you hurt anywhere else, other than your face?" A small nod was the only answer he got. "Do you want me to go and get the nurse?" Rachel looked up, wide eyed and shook her head violently. "Okay, okay. I won't do that." It was heart wrenching, seeing Rachel so broken, so vulnerable. Tom was trying to work out a way to get Rachel medical help, when Kim had an idea. "Would you let Tom look at your injuries? I know he isn't a nurse or a doctor, but he is trained in First Aid, because he does football training." This time the nod was almost imperceptible.

Tom glared at Kim for a second, he was trained on how to deal with sprained ankles; he wasn't even sure what he was going to find when he looked at Rachel. He quickly decided on a plan, and then started to speak to Rachel. "Rachel, will you take your jumper off for me?" Tom bit his lip and waited as Rachel looked terrified, and then slowly complied with his request. Beneath her jumper, she only had a vest on, meaning the two teachers could begin to see the full extent of exactly what had happened to her. He looked up as Kim barely managed to bite back a gasp. A pattern of blue, purple, green and brown was spread over Rachel's shoulders, chest and back as old and new bruises of various sizes overlapped. Tom was sure he could see the imprint of a boot on the back of her right shoulder. Her left elbow was red and swollen, obviously injured a couple of days ago. And both her wrists were covered in almost symmetrical bruises which couldn't be more than a day old. Tom picked up one of Rachel's wrists, wondering whether the flinch was due to pain or whether the contact was bringing back memories. He slowly turned the wrist over, noticing that the bruising was worse on the inside of her wrist than the outside. The only way Tom could think of getting bruises like that was by being held down and … No! Tom let out an involuntary gasp as he realised how those bruises came to be. Tom and Kim looked at each other once again, and Kim decided that since Tom had got this far, she should probably let him have a break and take over the harder questions. "Rachel, who did this to you?"

Rachel's eyes widened and her breathing quickened. Should she tell them? She doubted they'd let her go without an answer. As she opened her mouth to answer, her office door swung open, and she heard the one voice she had learnt to hate more than any other. She tensed, unable to think, to move, or even to breathe.

Tom and Kim both noticed Rachel tense before they noticed who had walked through the door. They looked up to see Max Tyler stood in the doorway. His expression quickly changed from anger, to fear, to concern. "Rachel, are you alright? What happened?" Rachel's reply was shaky, almost a whisper, as if she was terrified, "I'm fine Max, honestly." Tom looked between the two heads, and a sudden realisation dawned on him. "It was him, wasn't it?" Rachel's lack of response just confirmed his suspicions. Turning away from Rachel, he walked towards the door. "It was you, wasn't it? You bastard. You absolute bastard. How the hell could anyone do that to another person? You sick bastard." Max seemed as though he was trying to act nonchalant, as if he knew nothing of what was happening, but one look at Tom told him that might not be a good idea. Instead, he turned on his heels and ran. Tom, being the more sporty of the two, caught him easily, dragging him to the ground just next to the stairs. A crowd of pupils gathered around the two teachers as they fought each other. Eventually, Tom gained the upper hand, landing punch after punch, blow after blow on Max. He didn't care about the consequences, all he knew was that Max had to be punished for what he had done to Rachel, the head teacher that everyone at Waterloo Road had begun to love.

Back in the head's office, Kim sat comforting Rachel. "It's alright, it's over now. Everything's going to be okay."

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**Well, that changed completely from what I expected it was going to be. I might do a re-write of this at some point, but otherwise it'll just be a one shot. I hope you all enjoyed it. XD**


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